Progressive Alliance Voter Guide - Updated

 Sacramento Progressive Alliance

Progressive Voter Guide 

Vote Before June 5^th!

U.S. Senate

Kevin de León

Governor

Gavin Newsom

Attorney General
Xavier Becerra 

Lt. Governor

Gayle McLlaughlin

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Tony Thurmond

Congressional District 4

Jessica Morse

State Senate District 4

Phil Kim

Sacramento County District Attorney

Noah Phillips

Sacramento County Sheriff

Milo Fitch 

Sacramento City Council District 5

Tamika L’Ecluse

       Sacramento City Council District 7

Tristan Brown

Sacramento County Office of Education Area 2

Karina Talamantes

Sacramento County Office of Education Area 3

Richard Launey

Yolo County Supervisor District 2

Don Saylor

American River Flood Control District

Rachelanne Rae Vander Werf

If you live in Sacramento County you may vote now.  Ballots were sent to all registered voters. 

Propositions.  Prop. 68- Yes; Prop. 69- Yes;Prop. 70 -No; Prop 71,-Yes; Prop 72 - Yes. 

DeVos Says Schools Can Cooperate with ICE !

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos provoked an outcry Tuesday when she said schools can choose to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement on potentially undocumented students.

“I think that’s a school decision, it’s a local community decision,” DeVos told the House Education and the Workforce Committee. “I refer to the fact that we have laws and we also are compassionate. I urge this body to do its job and address and clarify where there is confusion around this.”

DeVos was responding to a question from Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) about whether she thinks school leaders should call ICE on students or their parents.

Advocacy groups immediately protested her answer, pointing out that under the Supreme Court case Plyler v. Doe, all children ― undocumented or not ― are entitled to a free public education. Some demanded that DeVos issue an immediate clarification in light of this fact.

Elizabeth Hill, press secretary for the U.S. Department of Education, provided HuffPost with a clarification of DeVos’ remarks on Wednesday. “Her position is that schools must comply with Plyler and all other applicable and relevant law,” said Hill.

During the hearing, DeVos did note that the 1982 Supreme Court decision requires public schools to educate all students, including those who are undocumented. Still, she repeatedly said it was a school’s decision if it wanted to call ICE on kids and their parents.

'Roll Up Your Sleeves': At a Dark Time for U.S. Unions, This Woman Sees Hope | Portside

'Roll Up Your Sleeves': At a Dark Time for U.S. Unions, This Woman Sees Hope | Portside

Lilly Eskelen Garcia. of the NEA.

Sacramento Voter Guide

 Sacramento Progressive Alliance

Progressive Voter Guide 

Vote Before June 5^th!

U.S. Senate

Kevin de León

Governor

Gavin Newsom

Attorney General
Xavier Becerra 

Lt. Governor

Gayle McLlaughlin

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Tony Thurmond

Congressional District 4

Jessica Morse

State Senate District 4

Phil Kim

Sacramento County District Attorney

Noah Phillips

Sacramento County Sheriff

Milo Fitch 

Sacramento City Council District 5

Tamika L’Ecluse

       Sacramento City Council District 7

Tristan Brown

Sacramento County Office of Education Area 2

Karina Talamantes

Sacramento County Office of Education Area 3

Richard Launey

Yolo County Supervisor District 2

Don Saylor

American River Flood Control District

Rachelanne Rae Vander Werf

If you live in Sacramento County you may vote now.  Ballots were sent to all registered voters. 
Propositions.  Prop. 68- Yes; Prop. 69- Yes;Prop. 70 -No; Prop 71,-Yes; Prop 72 - Yes. 

Kevin de Léon's speech at the California Democratic Convention

If you live in Sacramento County, you can vote now.  Vote by mail ballots have been sent to all registered voters.  Fill out the ballot. Sign it.  Mail your ballot on time. 

Teachers Ask, Where is the Money ?

Jeff Bryant

NC Teachers Shout 'Listen to Us!' to Lawmakers

Why does it take shutting down thousands of schools to get political leaders’ attention? What is this “dialogue people haven’t been wanting to have”? The truth is people who’ve been deciding education policy have forgotten we live in a democracy. For years, it’s been too easy for politicians to ignore teachers because the gap between what goes on in schools and what gets decided in state capitals and Washington D.C. has gotten way too wide. Teachers in North Carolina, and elsewhere, are reminding us of that.

Don't give Trump a Nobel Peace Prize. Defend the immigrants he bullies instead | The Sacramento Bee

Don't give Trump a Nobel Peace Prize. Defend the immigrants he bullies instead | The Sacramento Bee

History of Part of the Recent Left

Revolution in the Air Sixties Radicals Turn to Lenin, Mao, and Che by Max Elbaum New Edition with a Foreword by Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter

May 20,  4 PM. Time Tested Books. Co sponsored by DSA and the Marxists School

The first in-depth study of the US New Left's long march after 1968 Revolution in the Air is the definitive study of how radicals from the sixties movements embraced twentieth-century Marxism, and what movements of dissent today can learn from the legacies of Lenin, Mao and Che. This new paperback edition, released fifty years after the seminal Protests of 1968, features a foreword by Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter. It is essential reading for those concerned with the radical history of the struggle for racial equality in the US- and how we can learn from that history to achieve a just future.  “If you still believe sixties radicalism was nothing more than youthful middle-class confusion or parochial identity politics, then open these pages and dig.” – Robin D.G. Kelley “The breadth of Elbaum’s knowledge … marks this book as an absolutely first-rate work of political scholarship.” – Village Voice “It should be required reading for those interested in the modern history of social movements and for radicals of my generation who are trying to find out what went wrong.” – Los Angeles Times “Truly a superb work of scholarship that raises all the right questions.” – Radical History

English Learners Need Your Support -Sacramento

The Community Priorities Coalition in Sacramento announces that it will present its alternative budget for Sacramento City Unified at Board meeting on Thursday, May 17, 2018, at 6 PM. at 5735 47th. Avenue, Sacramento. We provide an annual alternative budget recommending how the district should use the major funds received under the Local Control Funding. 

SCUSD receives about $367 million each year under LCFF.  Of that money some $6.7 million is generated for English Learners in the schools.  In each of the last 3 years, only a small portion of these funds have been spent on EL learning.  The remainder apparently has been allocated to the district reserve fund.  The district claims it will be spending into a deficit next year.  They hide the money.

Teachers, parents and interested persons are welcome at the Board meeting at the Serna Center starting at 6 pm.  

I will be addressing the board as  Co- Chair of the Education Committee of LULAC, the League of United Latin American Citizens. Here is a draft of what I will say.  You are invited to come and give your view also. 

I speak tonight in support of the alternative budget presented by the Sacramento Community Priorities Coalition. 

Revolution in the Air Sixties Radicals Turn to Lenin, Mao, and Che by Max Elbaum New Edition with a Foreword by Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter

May 20,  4 PM. Time Tested Books. Co sponsored by DSA and the Marxists School

The first in-depth study of the US New Left's long march after 1968 Revolution in the Air is the definitive study of how radicals from the sixties movements embraced twentieth-century Marxism, and what movements of dissent today can learn from the legacies of Lenin, Mao and Che. This new paperback edition, released fifty years after the seminal Protests of 1968, features a foreword by Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter. It is essential reading for those concerned with the radical history of the struggle for racial equality in the US- and how we can learn from that history to achieve a just future.  “If you still believe sixties radicalism was nothing more than youthful middle-class confusion or parochial identity politics, then open these pages and dig.” – Robin D.G. Kelley “The breadth of Elbaum’s knowledge … marks this book as an absolutely first-rate work of political scholarship.” – Village Voice “It should be required reading for those interested in the modern history of social movements and for radicals of my generation who are trying to find out what went wrong.” – Los Angeles Times “Truly a superb work of scholarship that raises all the right questions.” – Radical History Max Elbaum was a member of Students for a Democratic Society and a leader of one of the main new communist movement organizations. His writings have appeared in the Nation, the US Guardian, CrossRoads, and the Encyclopedia of the American Left. He lives in Oakland. Max is availa

Poor People's Campaign Comes to Sacramento

‘Our People Are Being Hurt and We Won’t be Silent Anymore’

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CaliforniaPoor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival To Kick Off Six Weeks of Non-Violent Direct Action Monday in Sacramento

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Protests Planned in over 30 State Capitals, Washington, D.C.

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Movement Demands Sweeping Overhaul of Nation’s Voting Rights Laws, Policies to Address Poverty, Ecological Devastation, War Economy

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA—The CaliforniaPoor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival will kick off a six-week season of nonviolent direct action Monday in Sacramento.  The Campaign is demanding a massive overhaul of the nation’s voting rights laws, new programs to lift up the 140 million Americans living in poverty, immediate attention to ecological devastation and measures to curb militarism and the war economy. 

The Monday rally in California is one of over 30 actions across the country by poor and disenfranchised people, clergy and advocates who will engage in 40 days of nonviolent direct action and voter mobilization, among other activities. As a movement, we aim at transforming the nation’s political, economic and moral structures by building on the work of the original Poor People’s Campaign 50 years ago. 

To emphasize the urgent necessity for action,hundreds of participants are joining ‘Freedom Trains’,in solidarity with their 1968 counter parts. These caravans will be launching from  Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. To Commemorate the daily hardships that Women  endure, these caravans will embark on Mother’s Day, May 13th, to join forces in Sacramento to focus on the first week’s theme: Somebody’s Hurting Our People: Women, Youth, Disabled, Children in Poverty and Right to Education.

English Learners Deserve Support in Sacramento

Update ! The Community Priorities Coalition in Sacramento announces that the Sacramento City Unified School District will have its regular meeting on Thursday, May 17, to consider the district budget for 2018/2019. 

This budget has significant implications for how Local Control Funding monies will be spent. [update: the posted agenda for the meeting does not include a consideration of the budget.  Watch this blog for updates.  The issue remains as defined below.]

SCUSD receives about $367 million each year under LCFF.  Of that money some $6.7 million is generated for English Learners in the schools.  In each of the last 3 years, only a small portion of these funds have been spent on EL learning.  The remainder apparently has been allocated to the district reserve fund.  The district claims it will be spending into a deficit next year.  They hide the money.

Teachers, parents and interested persons are welcome at the Board meeting at the Serna Center starting at 6 pm.  

I will be addressing the board as  Co- Chair of the Education Committee of LULAC, the League of United Latin American Citizens. Here is a draft of what I will say.  You are invited to come and give your view also. 

I speak tonight in support of the alternative budget presented by the Sacramento Community Priorities Coalition. 

With Lula in Jail, the Future of Democracy in Brazil is at Stake | Portside

With Lula in Jail, the Future of Democracy in Brazil is at Stake | Portside

Poor People's Campaign Gears Up for Mother's Day

Poor People’s Campaign Gears Up for Mother’s Day Launch. A major new report makes the case for a 'fusion movement' against systemic racism, poverty and inequality, militarism and the war economy, and ecological devastation.

I am not speaking about the poor. I am not speaking for the poor. I am the poor.” Claudia De la Cruz was speaking at an April 10 press briefing in Washington, D.C. on behalf of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival.Inspired by a similar 1968 initiative led by Dr. Martin Luther King and other civil rights leaders, the campaign aims to lift up the voices of people like De la Cruz who’ve been most affected by our country’s persistent poverty. A descendant of immigrants from the Dominican Republic, De la Cruz was born in the South Bronx, the poorest Congressional district in the country. Median household income there is about $26,000, compared to $116,000 for the wealthiest district, which straddles Virginia’s northern suburbs. She’s a member of the national steering committee of the Poor People’s Campaign and one of the state organizers for the New York City area. At the briefing, the Poor People’s Campaign and the Institute for Policy Studies co-released a 120-page report on poverty and inequality, systemic racism, ecological devastation, the war economy, and militarism. The Souls of Poor Folk draws on empirical data and interviews with grassroots leaders in each of these inter-related areas to make the case for reviving the 1968 campaign. The report points out, for example, that 140 million Americans today are poor or low-income.

The Outcome in Arizona | Portside

The Outcome in Arizona | Portside

Debate: How Should Unions Deal With Free Riders? | Labor Notes

Debate: How Should Unions Deal With Free Riders? | Labor Notes

Next Steps - Poor People's Campaign

Arizona Joins Red State Revolt: Teachers’ Strike Reaches Day Five

Making People’s History in Arizona: Educators Rise Up – Rethinking Schools

Making People;s History in Arizona: Educators Rise Up ; Rethinking Schools

Bring Back May Day

Most of the world recognizes May 1 — May Day — as International Workers’ Day. Here in one of the few countries that doesn’t, it’s worth pausing to ask how U.S. workers are doing.

At an event last December, Fight for $15 organizer Terrence Wise recalled “going to bed at night, ignoring my own stomach’s rumbling, but having to hear my three little girls’ stomachs rumble. That’s something no parent should have to endure.”

Wise was marking the launch of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival.

Last month, the Institute for Policy Studies and the Poor People’s Campaign released The Souls of Poor Folk, a report on 50 years of change in the issues that affect working people, and particularly those at the bottom. We looked at systemic racism, poverty, militarism, and ecological devastation.

We found some startling and unhappy results. For the most part, workers like Wise are struggling hard to get by.

With the destruction of industries and the cities that housed them, the nature of our economy has shifted. Although the official unemployment rate is low, employment today often means low-wage work that offers little job security.

Our society’s treatment of workers has changed, too. For example, 28 states have passed so-called “right to work” laws that undermine the ability of workers to organize.

THE SOULS OF POOR FOLK

Auditing America after 1968's Poor People's Campaign 

That’s meant steadily declining union membership, which keeps workers from getting their fair share of the wealth produced by the U.S. economy over the past 50 years. Despite enormous growth in the overall economy, wages for the bottom 80 percent of workers have remained largely stagnant.